This invention relates to the cooling of water in a dispenser which may dispense water which is chilled, water at substantially room temperature or mixtures of water at these temperatures, and more particularly to such a dispenser which may be located on a counter adjacent to sink and be connected in communication with the water at the sink faucet.
A conventional chiller or cooler used for dispensing liquids such as a cooler/dispenser used for bottled water utilizes refrigeration equipment including a compressor unless the liquid is within a reservoir surrounded by ice or a refrigerant or other heat transfer medium. Examples, of the latter are illustrated in Pique U.S. Pat. No. 2,506,840; Olson U.S. Pat. No. 2,821,844; Geisler U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,520 and Bonimi U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,053; while examples of the former are illustrated in Natter U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,970 and Schroeder U.S. Pat. No. 3,892,335; while Radino U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,927 illustrates a hybrid combination of these. In Moren U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,489 there is disclosed a thermoelectric device having a probe that extends into water within a receptacle to cool the liquid, the thermoelectric device being one which responds to a direct current input to provide one side relatively cooled and one side relatively heated.